ICC T20 WORLD CUP 2022

October 17, 2022

Richie Berrington

Bellerive Oval

Scotland

Post Match Media Conference

Scotland - 160/5, WI - 118

Q. Another famous win. Some of your feelings right now?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Like, obviously elated to be off to a winning start like that against West Indies. A lot of good memories from last year's World Cup as well. We won that first game against Bangladesh, and I think we took a lot of belief from that.

The boys showed today how good we can be. That belief has always been there. We know if we execute our skills well we can certainly give ourselves a good chance. So really happy to get a winning start.

Q. Did you think 160 would be enough?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: I think at one stage we probably thought we may get a few more after getting off to a really good start with George Munsey and Michael Jones. Obviously West Indies pulled things back a little bit. But we knew it was a competitive score and if we executed our skills in the field and with the ball, it would certainly give us a chance which we obviously managed to do.

Q. It seemed to be quite tricky playing the short ball out there. There were a few dismissals, guys missed timing poor shots, is that the wet nature of the pitch, perhaps?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Yeah, I think it was a pretty good surface. I think it was just down to some of the skills of the bowlers, to be honest. They looked at the wicket really hard and that sometimes does cause a bit of variation but it was certainly a good tactic to use on that surface.

Q. Maybe just a word about the fielding performances, some excellent field catches, obviously runners, George's over-the-shoulder catch, and the diving forward one as well. Obviously something you pride yourselves on?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Absolutely fielding is something we pride ourselves on. I think we've done it on a number of occasions there where we put on a good show on the field, especially in big games. I think it's backing up the bowlers like that is always going to give you a good chance.

Q. You've obviously played in some of the best kind of days in Scottish history. Where does that rank?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: I think, look, it's right up there. I think to get a win like that, World Cup, it's obviously pretty special to be representing your country at World Cup. It's kind of as big as it gets. But for us, I think as I said before, the belief has always been there that we can put on that performance. So yes, certainly a big win for us but one we'll enjoy. We know there's still plenty more to play for.

Q. After what happened with the West Indies last time you played them, is it kind of even sweeter?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Look, that was a long time ago. And so I think just to get off to a winning start really, especially against a test playing nation, I'm obviously extremely proud of the guys.

Q. Did you actually feel you didn't even deliver a perfect performance; and actually that's a positive you've got; you won pretty easily but you've still got areas to improve?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Yeah, absolutely. We know there's areas we can still improve, which I think is exciting. And we've got a lot of match winners on our team. I thought today it was an overall good team performance. Obviously a couple of guys really stood out. George Munsey with the bat. And Mark Watt with the ball. But there's still other guys that can play the part. And hopefully through the tournament we'll just keep getting better.

Q. On Wattsy, he seemed to relish the big stage and getting a few wickets with his sort of leverage from 24 yards?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Absolutely. He's done it for -- although he's still young, he's done it for a number of years for us now. And he's certainly someone that I feel I can throw the ball to in big moments. And he tends to deliver and get big wickets. It's certainly a strength of his. And I know that you'll see plenty more of him.

Q. In some circles, it will be classified as an upset. But should we stop getting surprised by Scotland putting on performances like that?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Look, as I said for us, we knew we were going to have to play well. We were playing against a very good team. But we back our skills. And we know on the day it's just about executing as well as we can. Yes, it's a big win. But that belief, that belief has always been that we can do it.

Q. And you spoke about the skills of the bowlers coming through. And it's a pretty experienced attack now. Been playing with the same one. So what are those skills that really came off, you think, today?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: The bat today, obviously George Munsey, Michael Jones were excellent up front. It gave us a great platform, which kind of gives a bit of time to get in through the middle. As I said, there were a couple of cameos from Calum MacLeod and Chris Greaves towards the end which gave us that competitive score. Again, as I said, the fielders were excellent today. We backed up the bowlers and took our chances which is key in this format.

Q. You spoke about bowlers. Have you discussed certain lengths to bowl on these Australian pitches to use to bigger boundaries at all?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Yes, of course it's something we take into consideration. I think you have to try and adapt as quick as you can.

And as you saw there, we have got a very experienced bowling attack. So it's trying to use the skills we have for as long as we can. But we do try and take into consideration the ground dimensions and obviously the surface that's in front of us.

Q. Does this win also tell you that, unlike last year, in this World Cup defending totals could also be a strategy that will come in handy as you move forward?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: I think potentially. I think it will probably just depend on when you're playing and where you're playing, and they can be different. We'll just have to wait and see.

But I think in big games, runs on the board can be really important. We know some of the grounds here in Australia can be quite as big as well. So it gives you a bit of a chance to defend. We'll have to see how the next couple of games go and go from there.

Q. Just about Mark Watt, talked about how he loves the big moment. What else can you tell us about him. He's quite a character, the way he celebrates his wickets as well.

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Look, he's a big character in our dressing room. Great team man. As I said, he's made for the big occasion.

So I have no doubt you will see plenty more of him. I think he's been a key player for us for a long period of time now, even though he is still quite young. But he's a really experienced part of our group. And I'm sure he'll go from strength to strength from here.

Q. Have you faced a 24-yard delivery a lot in the nets, like how different is it?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: I've had the odd run of Mark. It can just throw you off a little bit. Something he's sort of mastered over the last couple of years. It's something that worked really well for him. Yeah, he's a clever cricketer, he's always looking for different ways out to the batsman. Certainly one that works for him.

Q. Touching on George, how have you seen him progress the last couple of years to where he is now?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Is that George Munsey?

Q. George Munsey.

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Look, he's been a really important part of our lineup for a while now. Obviously with the intent he brings to the top of the order, I think a lot of our guys can feed off of that. And he certainly puts the ball under a lot of pressure, which makes it easier for the guys at the other end.

He's gone from strength to strength. And we've always believed he can do it against the best. So hopefully his good form will continue from here.

Q. The next game a couple days away, how would you celebrate this impact very real quickly?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: Absolutely. I think as a group we'll certainly enjoy the moment together. But we know there's a lot more to play for and it's quite a quick turnaround with the games here. We'll be ready to go again come Wednesday.

Q. I wanted to know, you guys were referring to a piece of paper with a lot of information from time to time on the field. How much of data analytics played a role and in preparing for opponents, and how do you draw a balance between data on the field?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: We certainly do use a lot of analyses. We have a very good set of analyses to set up. Certainly something we do a lot of work with. I know there's a couple of bowlers that really like to use it out in the field to make sure they've got their sort of plans nailed. But for me, still a lot of the time you have to go with your instinct in terms of decisions you're going to make. So I think it's different for different people but certainly something we do try and use as much as we can.

Q. You guys play hard, but I want to know exactly what was written on that paper that Mark Watt referred to?

RICHIE BERRINGTON: You'll probably have to ask him that one. I'm not even sure it was anything to do with cricket, to be honest.

As I say, he's on top of his game and he's always looking to stay ahead and find different ways to see what the batters are trying to do. I'm sure he had a few notes on there just to remind himself of who he was coming up against and what he was looking to do.